Shanghai – Suzhou Train Routes

Suzhou is a popular day-trip from Shanghai with some train taking less than 30 minutes. It is also an easy day trip as there are almost 300 pairs of trains between the two cities. While there are plenty of options, in order to maximize your sightseeing time, you need to carefully pick your trains. Here is some advice to keep in mind.

Shanghai to Suzhou trains

Trains can depart Shanghai from different stations. You can choose the Shanghai railway station or the Shanghai Hongqiao station depending on which is closer to your hotel. To visit the usual attractions in Suzhou, you can arrive at either the Suzhou railway station or the Suzhou north station. There are high-speed trains (G and D trains) as well as normal trains (K, T and Z trains). The normal trains take nearly two hours while high-speed trains will cover this route in as little as 30 minutes or less. So, bullet trains are definitively better. Make sure not to take the train to Suzhouyuanqu. This location is not convenient at all. And among the bullet trains the D trains are the cheapest option for the equivalent travel duration. Note that prices can vary quite a bit depending on the train. Not that the difference is huge in dollar terms, but percentage-wise, it is a big difference.

While there are many trains each day, trains do fill up so just showing up at the station to buy a tickets may result in a 2-hour wait for the next available train. So, booking even slightly ahead is a big plus especially if you are doing a day trip as every hour counts.

D Trains
First departure: 06h12
Last departure: 21h26
Frequency: every 10 to 60 minutes
Duration: mostly about 30 minutes
Departure station: Shanghai Hongqiao
Arrival station: Suzhou station or Suzhou north
Class of service and fare:
First class: ¥30.5
Second class : ¥25.5

Suzhou to Shanghai trains

Trains can depart Suzhou from different stations, tourists should use the Suzhou station or Suzhou north station, both which are connected to the subway network. As in the other direction, high-speed trains (G and D trains) are the best choice as normal trains take two hours. Again we recommend the D trains as they are the cheapest option for the equivalent travel duration although G trains are more frequent.